Gray whales have been subject to hunting since prehistoric times, due to their slow swimming speeds and coastal distribution. The North Atlantic population was extinct by the early 1700s, although the causes are unclear. Over-exploitation was thought to have caused the extinction of the western gray whale until Soviet scientists in the 1980s reported a small remnant group summering off Sakhalin Island. The eastern North Pacific subpopulation had reached such low numbers by the end of the 19th century that commercial whaling ceased, but it has now recovered to at or near carrying capacity, its abundance showing some fluctuation in response to environmental conditions.

The eastern North Pacific subpopulation is subject to anthropogenic threats such as entanglements in fishing gear (Baird et al. 2002), disturbance by vessels and other noise, collisions, and possibly petroleum-related and other contaminants (Moore and Clarke 2002). However, these do not appear to be having a significant effect on the demography of the population.